Stanley Kubrick As Photojournalist

I recently discovered that Stanley Kubrick was a New York City photojournalist before he became a filmmaker. In 1945, while only 17 years old, Kubrick sold a photo to Look Magazine. The folks at Look, must have liked that image. From 1946 to 1950, Kubrick shot more than 300 assignments for the magazine while detailing and documenting the sights and people of New York City.

Based out of New York City, Look magazine also sent Kubrick to different locations. One of these locations was Chicago where, in the summer of 1949, Kubrick shot images for a story called “Chicago, City of Contrasts.”

As one might expect, the images Kubrick captured are both unique and wonderful. Each image represents a forgotten moment in time from a lost Golden Age in America directly after World War II. Sometimes gritty… Sometimes thought provoking… These images all foreshadow the creative perspective and genius that Kubrick later develops as a filmmaker.

Presented below are a few images from Stanley Kubrick's photojournalism work. You can also see more by following the paper trail links at the end of this post. In addition, some of Kubrick’s early photography work can be viewed in a collection curated by Museum of the City of New York. 

Enjoy!!

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Paper Trail:

This post was originally published on Kerrsplat.com, dated March 16, 2013.

Ralph McQuarrie: An Artist For The Ages

It was with a sad heart that I read and discovered Ralph McQuarrie had passed away on March 3, 2012 at the age of 82. For those that may not know, Ralph McQuarrie was the American conceptual illustrator for the original Star Wars trilogy. He also was a conceptual illustrator for the original Battlestar Galactica TV series, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, ET, Raider of the Lost Ark, Cocoon, and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. Ralph McQuarrie's work on the 1985 film Cocoon earned him the Academy Award for Visual Effects.

I loved Ralph McQuarrie's work on the original Star Wars trilogy. His conceptual illustrations brought life to the films before they were available in the theaters and added depth to them afterwards. There are many found memories of sitting on my bed as a boy and looking through these illustrations.

Ralph McQuarrie was a true creative and visionary. Ralph you will be missed!!

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Paper Trail:

This post was originally published on Kerrsplat.com, dated March 4, 2012.